In wireless communications networks, there is always a challenge to obtain good performance and capacity for a given communications protocol, its parameters and the physical environment in which the wireless communications network is deployed.
A cellular network, or mobile network, is generally defined as a radio network distributed over land areas called cells, each served by at least one fixed-location transceiver device, i.e., central control node, known as a cell site or base station (BS), hereinafter commonly referred to as network nodes. In turn the central control node is connected to a wired core network.
In a traditional cellular, or mobile, system, communications from/to portable transceiver devices (hereinafter denoted as wireless devices) takes place via the central control node. Thus, regardless of the final destination of an information message transmitted by a wireless device, the information message is always transmitted first to the wired core network via the central control node, where the information message is examined, e.g., for addressing, routing and/or scheduling purposes, and then forwarded onward accordingly until it reaches its final destination device.
This approach has been sufficiently adequate up to now when traffic has travelled mainly “inter-cell”, i.e., between different cells, or even “inter-network” e.g., between the cellular, or mobile, network and other networks, such as a wired landline network. In such cases, it is necessary for traffic to be transported to the destination cell or landline network via the central control node.
However, “intra-cell” traffic, i.e., traffic within a cell, will also be directed to the central control node, only to be forwarded back to a wireless device within the same cell, potentially in close proximity to the original transmitting wireless device.
Hence, there is still a need for improved short range communications between wireless devices in a wireless communications system.